Regulator: Amazon UK's "release date" delivery promise not misleading

British advertising regulators have dismissed a complaint against Amazon UK, which advertises release-day delivery for video games, but occasionally—as forum rage attests—falls short.

The Advertising Standards Authority said that Amazon's couriers usually made it on time, and that fine print concerning the possibility of delays and offering shipping refunds meant that the promise wasn't misleading.

"Although the complainant had not received the game on the release date, we noted that very few other customers had requested a refund due to the game arriving after that date," the group wrote in its adjudication. "Because the complainant had been refunded the cost of delivery in accordance with Amazon's RDD policy, and because the vast majority of RDD orders had been fulfilled, we concluded that the claim "Want to receive this the day it comes out?" was not misleading."

ASA Adjudication on Amazon EU Sarl